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The Rhino who Swallowed a Storm: Book Review

I am honored to be able to share this book review with you! Like most homeschoolers we are hoarderslovers of books. It's a love affair that only gets more intense as the children get older.The book I am bringing to you today is a special one. It's published by a company that I am sure you are all familiar with, Reading Rainbow. Who didn't watch Reading Rainbow as a child? I love their products.

Not only am I excited about working with Reading Rainbow but the author of this children's book is non other than actor, director and educator LeVar Burton. (Some of you might remember him as Geordi from Star Trek, the Next Generation or as Kunta Kinte in ROOTS - among other things)

This is Mr. Burton's 1st children's book but he is no stranger to education. He has been working with Reading Rainbow for years.

Debuting today -

The Rhino Who Swallowed A Storm

(taken from the Amazon site)

When little Mica Mouse is scared by thunder booming outside her cozy home, Papa Mouse reaches for just the right story to comfort her. Hugging her close, he begins to read The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm. In this poetic book-within-a-book, a happy little rhinoceros is overwhelmed by a storm that sweeps away everything he loves. Swallowing the storm just makes him feel worse, so Rhino sets off on a whimsical journey toward healing. Along the way, he meets many friends, including a kind spider, a brave kangaroo, a wise tortoise, and an uplifting whale. With their help, Rhino lets go of the storm inside and learns to see the light in a world turned gray. Mica Mouse is soothed by the story and Papa’s gentle reminder that even though bad things sometimes happen, the world is full of people who care.

My first impression from this hardcover book was the quality of the paper and illustrations...before I read a single word, this impressed me.

As the girls and I gathered onto the bed in our PJ's the anticipation was building! A new book - no one had heard of...until now...

My daughters kept thinking we were "skipping" pages because the pages were so thick and glossy. Great quality of paper. The illustrations were excellent. The attention to detail in telling this story and the way that color was used was superb!

Originally I was reading to the two little ones (ages 5 and 7) however, Zachary (who is 10) was secretly listening to our bedtime reading and snagged the book from me as soon as the last page closed. He wanted to read it to himself.

Another thing I loved about this book, was the way in which it was written. A book within a book and the girls thought that was clever. The rhyming aspect was great. Made the flow of the book easy.

The message was great. My girls understood what was happening to the Rhino and connected with his character. Molly noticed something I did not...the color of the Rhino changed in the story depending on the stage he was in (don't want to give it all away).